feanaro_curufinwe | (no subject)

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"Your orthography is atrocious."

Clark couldn't help the laugh, nor the shake of his head as he did it.

"The language of this country is a hodge podge of a variety of languages, primarily two other languages with other pieces jammed in throughout the years. To paraphrase a quote: English, this language, doesn't borrow from other languages so much as follow them down dark alleys, beat them unconscious, and rifle through their pockets for loose vocabulary."

He leaned back a little, one hand settling on a pillow.

"I could teach you Esperanto or Latin, which are far more logical in construction, but neither of them are in active use nowadays."

The look Fëanáro gives him could best be described as an unholy combination of disgust and perplexity.

"Why in the name of--" He frowns, eyes darkening, cutting himself off. "Why would they do such a thing? If you have not a word for a thing, it would seem simpler to create one, that it be better integrated to the whole of the tongue seamlessly, rather than cut, and pick, and paste a nonsensical hodgepodge--"

He has begun ranting, rising to his feet and pacing as he does, the vital flame burning in him becoming evident. His force of personality is almost a palpable thing, radiating out like heat or light, and Clark has a very narrow window of opportunity, if he wants to cut the greatest of the Ñoldor off from his tangent.

Clark is quite content to lean back against the bed and listen to him rant.

Oh is he now? How wonderful. Well, the High King does have a way with words, though after a short time, he runs out of English, and moves on to Quenya expounding in a voice that manages to resonate even in the barn, projecting without thinking, expecting to be listened to, to be heeded.

...which is when Clark may or may not let out a cough that, with super lungs, was actually loud enough to be heard over the din.

"--have you something caught in your throat, Clark?" ~~Let it never be said that Fëanáro was so self-absorbed that he failed to heed the needs of others.~~ ...no he's mostly mildly annoyed that he's been interrupted.

Clark waved him off before giving a couple other coughs that were considerably less loud. Human loud.

"Oh no, nothing much. I'm fine. Thank you, though. I didn't mean to interrupt."

Oh hell yes he did.

"Though perhaps it's good I did. You were practically loud enough to be heard in the next county. Got a set of lungs on you, don't you?"

"Hmm. I suppose. It is more-or-less a requirement of a king though," Fëanáro points out. "Or of being heard over a battle, or a gaggle of sons..."

"Certainly. Though not very good for being subtle while you learn the ways of this land and its language. However inferior it might be."

He settled on the bed a little more.

"Though there is a reason for the decision to meld different languages and absorb words and grammatical mechanics. I can explain if you'd like me to go over the history."

"By all means. I would like to hear this history. You may relay it to me whilst I give some practice to the writing of these letters. I do like the design of this pen," he adds, as he takes it up, along with Clark's notebook.

"A simple design, and yet so practical..." He twirls it in his fingers, considering it for a moment. "Ink at your fingertips, as much as you may desire, quick to dry, hard to smear..."

Which was when Clark launched into a brief history of the English people and their strange, jumbled up language, including the importation of the language to the country they currently occupied. For all that it was a brief overview, it was extremely on point, clearly told by someone who had done a great deal of research on the subject, and was frank in his evaluation of the people, societies, and decisions of the past while softening things somewhat in the hopes of keeping his guest from launching himself from the room in a fervor.

Edited 2014-12-21 04:58 (UTC)

He shows wisdom then, because there are any number of things in that narrative that may very well have sent Fëanáro storming off on the warpath. Still, it's a fascinating story, even as abbreviated as it clearly is. He finds himself writing out some of the words as Clark speaks them, getting a feel of the shapes and sounds of the language, and the strange people that it belongs to.

He also takes some time, as he listens, to begin working out a Tengwar orthography for English, because really.

When Clark's finished, some of their daylight is gone but they still have some time before they have to go in for dinner. He puts his hands down on his legs and pushes himself up to stand.

"Would you like some time on your own to read and get yourself settled here? I figure a tour of the farm can happen tomorrow, nice and early."

"I would," he says with a nod. "Are there any that books that you would recommend?"

He considered the question for a moment before pulling out a copy of Whispers in the Dark by Dian Belmont. He held it out to the man.

"This was one of my favorites as a kid. The language... it's genuinely beautiful. At least, as beautiful as English can be."

"An intriguing title," he observes. "I will acquaint myself somewhat further with the writing, and then read it with due consideration."

"If you need anything explained, feel free to ask. I'm happy to help." He looked around the room, for all appearances trying to figure out if his guest needed anything, and he was, that was true. But he was also trying to remember if there was anything that he'd left in this room or this area or the barn in general which might alert the gentleman in question that his host (at least one of them) might be from another world.

...thankfully, he knew that his Kryptonian e-book (as his mother called it) was in his duffle bag with the rest of his usual kit.

"I should probably check and see if Ma needs any help with dinner. Will you be all right here?"

"I will. Should anything trouble me, I will ask, but otherwise, I shall stay out of your way, and let you to your tasks. Though I am skilled in many areas, cooking has never really been one of them."

"Just don't hesitate to call. I'll be doing some work around the farm, but I've got pretty good ears."

Good enough that he could hear if his guest was in Japan, but he wasn't mentioning that.

He threw off a wave and trotted down the steps, heading out towards the fields.

...and he was just a little bit more careful with how quickly he did all of the necessary farm tasks, but he was well used to doing them using his abilities, and there wasn't much point to doing it the normal way. At least, not unless he wanted to miss dinner.

Luckily for Clark, Fëanáro isn't really terribly interested in the workings of the farm. The books are far more interesting, and once he sets to it, hideous orthography aside, it absorbs all of his attention. The book he takes slowly, with plenty of reference to a volume called 'Dictionary', a marvellous thing, being a compilation of every known word in the English language, with a definition, spelling, pronounciation...

He wishes he had thought of it himself, frankly, and makes a note to do the same for Quenya at least, at some point.

But there are plenty that he will need to ask about, for they are clearly common cultural or literary allusions, knowledge of which is assumed held in common by all people who might happen upon the tale.

A couple of hours later, there is a light knock on the stairs below him.

"Fëanáro? Can I pull you away from the book for dinner?"

He is about to answer in the negative - this is very interesting - but his stomach growls, and he recalls how long it has been since he last ate, and so he puts aside his studies for the moment, and stands.

"I will come."

"That's good. I think Ma's made us a veritable feast in there and it smells really good," not that he could enjoy the meat, but that didn't mean it made the smell any less appetizing.

"If you wanted to change clothes, I'm sure some of my father's old things would probably fit you. We don't have much, but this house's always been happy to help."

"The offer is appreciated, but I will be all right for now," he replies. His English comes more easily, and look at him, employing colloquialisms and everything! Fëanáro marks his place - though it is convenient that each page is marked with a numeral, and he does not think that he will forget - and joins Clark in the barn below.

"I hope you are prepared for questions, Clark. There are many cultural references and literary allusions in the book that I lack the context for."